Harry Potter and The Feathers of Freedom
by Yu-Shin Chen
Summary: Her magic was stronger than everyone's.She barely had anyone.She was too afraid to hurt them.Yet she couldn't do this alone.He was deemed to be just a troublemaker.He extended a hand of friendship to her,and together they must fulfill Phoenix and Dragon.
1. Father's Comfort: Have Fun and Come Home

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.  
Note: This story will contain facts from both the books and movies.  
Note 2: This story is strictly AU, will have OC, and characters may be OOC. Also, this story takes place in Harry's sixth year. Sirius is also alive in this story.  
Warning: Yaoi and Yuri alert.

Harry Potter

and

**_The_** **_Feathers of Freedom_**

Chapter One

Father's Comfort

_Have fun and Come Home_

_

* * *

It was night. Atop a small hill rose a tall, white mansion. Inside the huge mansion was a family, breaking into pieces._

"_You are an **abomination**!" A man roared at the child before him. The child was eight, and she simply stood and listened to her parents rant. She was completely emotionless, and didn't seem to care much of what her parents said. Her seriousness was unnerving. _

_Three other children watched helplessly as their parents screamed at their sibling. They were two girls and one boy. The first girl was eleven, and she stood to the side. Her knees were weak; she didn't know how to help her younger siblings. The second girl was only six and in tears, hiding behind her brother. She screamed for her parents to stop, but they didn't listen. The next was their nine year old brother who held his younger sister, trying not to cry himself. _

"_Why can't you just be a normal child!?" Their mother questioned the girl. "Why couldn't you have been born a normal child!?"_

_The girl didn't answer, but only continued to stare. The man grew angry at his unresponsive daughter and immediately slapped her. To this, the youngest girl screamed, more tears flying. She pleaded to her parents to stop, but they continued to be deaf to her._

"_Get out of my house before I kill you!" The man screeched, "Get out! Get out!!!"_

_The girl simply turned on her heels and walked towards the door, without a word or sound. The man glared at her back as she reached the door. His wand whipped out, and he pointed it at her._

"_No!!!" Screamed the youngest daughter, flinging her small frame at her father, trying to knock the wand from his hand. _

_The girl turned on her heels. Her eyes widened as she saw her younger sister fly and hit the wall, collapsing to the floor unconscious. _

"_Stop it!" The boy shouted at his father. In his rage, the man advanced upon his own son. The boy quickly turned to the girl, who was now crying: she'd caused their pain. "Get out of here! Hurry!"_

"_But – " She protested._

"_Go Aletheia!" The boy yelled, "Go, now!"_

_Aletheia turned on her heels and ran from the mansion. Tears fell down her cheeks as she heard more shouts and screams from behind. She ran and ran, engulfed in darkness, pain, rage, and fear………

* * *

_

The girl sobbed in her sleep, withdrawing from the hand that gently shook her. The arms resorted to simply holding her instead, rocking her back and forth. 

Aletheia's eyes snapped open only to look at calm grey blue eyes. His handsome face was framed with black hair, tall and muscular, but not overly so.

"F-Father…" Now thirteen year old Aletheia choked out to her adopted father.

"It's okay, Ally." Regulus, now in his mid thirties, spoke to her softly, "You're going to be alright. I'm sure of it."

Aletheia pressed her face into his chest, tears falling once again from her purple eyes. They were extremely dark purple eyes, but the color of them shifted lightness and darkness depending upon lighting.

"Are you sure you want to accept this job offer?" Regulus asked her.

Aletheia immediately nodded, "I've nothing else to do, what with my…"special" magical powers. Working at Hogwarts is all I will probably ever get."

"But Defense Against the Dark Arts? That's a pretty shifty position. The stakes…"

"Please, Father, don't tell me you believe in that so called curse too!?"

Regulus sighed and smiled softly at his daughter, "I suppose…But if you really want to go to work, then I can't stop you."

"I'll make you proud, Father." Aletheia stated.

"I'll bet you will. But you do realize that this means you'll be seeing your brother and sisters."

"Yes, and so?"

"You'll be their teacher, and after five years…Won't it be a bit awkward?"

"Not so much; after all, I have kept in contact with them. Thank god they managed to get away from our original family. I just hope they've gotten along as well as they tell me."

* * *

Harry Potter walked with Ron and his family as well as Hermione through the busy train station of King's Cross, pushing there own possessions on trolleys towards Platform 9¾. Hedwig lightly hooted, Pig zoomed around in his cage, and Crookshanks lightly purred in his basket. 

"Harry Potter!" A squeaky voice sighed to him as a puff of smoke suddenly appeared on his trolley.

"Sssh!!" Harry hissed to Dobby the House Elf. "Shut up! And get down!"

Dobby quickly hid behind Hedwig's cage, looking about for some hidden danger.

At his confusion, Hermione said, "People don't just up and appear in puffs of smoke in Muggles' area."

"What're you doing here anyway?" Ron questioned.

"Don't be mean." Ginny stated.

"Do you mind moving?" A sharp and familiar voice spoke behind them. They turned to see Draco, his things being pushed by a servant. "Unlike you blathering idiots, I don't want to be late for the train. Now, move."

Draco and his servant pushed past the four and on to the gateway to Platform 9¾.

* * *

A moment later and Draco was joined by Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. Draco wasted no time in detaching himself from the pesky group, disappearing without another word to them towards the luggage area, his servant following. 

"Well that was weird." Ron stated, "Usually he'd say something more than 'Move' to us."

"Hermione!" A voice called above the crowd. A girl suddenly emerged from the sea of people, already dressed in her black robes. She seemed urgent, and her face expressed worry. Her hair was dark black, a bit wavy, and reached slightly past her shoulders. Eyes, deep and understanding, were a shining cross between aqua, aquamarine, and cerulean.

"Ziba?" Hermione questioned.

Ziba ran up to Hermione, panting hard as if she'd been running for a while now, "Hermione, have you any idea where my younger sister Chaele is? We got separated in the crowd, and I can't find her!"

"Calm down!" Hermione said, calming her frantic friend down.

"Who's she?" Ron questioned.

Harry kicked his friend in the shin. Ginny giggled.

"We just got here, but we haven't seen Chaele." Hermione said.

"What's she look like?" Harry asked.

"She's shorter than us, because she's going to be a first year at Hogwarts this year. She's got really long, light black hair, the tips a sunny brunette with the same colored highlights too. They're natural, and her eyes are the same color as mine, if not a little lighter. She's also wearing her robes now too."

"We'll help look for her." Ginny commented.

"Thank you!" Ziba said before turning to return to her search.

"You still haven't explained who she is." Ron said

"Oh, honestly Ron, don't you even recognize her!? You should!" Hermione answered

"She does look familiar, but I can't quite put my finger on it." Harry said.

"You're both idiots, aren't you?" Ginny questioned, "She's a sixth year Gryffindor too!"

"She is!?" Ron asked, "Hm…You'd think I'd know that by now."

"It's only because you two are blinder than a bat." Ginny said dryly.

"We really should be helping her find her sister." Harry said.

"Harry's right." Hermione agreed, "We can discuss this later." They waved goodbye to Dobby.

* * *

The students were boarding the train now. Still no sign of Chaele. The group waved goodbye to Mrs. and Mr. Weasley before boarding. They found a compartment in the back, as usual. Shortly afterwards, Luna and Neville joined them. 

Across the hall, Harry noticed, sat Ziba across from a boy. He was fourteen and had dark black hair, much like Ziba. His hair was cut short, but not military style short, and his eyes were just a bit darker than Ziba's. Ziba caught Harry watching and smiled. Her friend turned to him as well and waved.

Harry smiled back at the two before turning back to his friends.

"We've gotta get to the front compartment." Ron stated, standing with Hermione, "Prefects job you know."

His friends nodded, and the two left the compartment.

* * *

She wandered aimlessly through the halls. She'd been searching for her sister and brother for so long, she nearly missed the train. Now everywhere she looked, the compartments were all filled. 

She walked by a particular compartment and found that there was one seat, in between two boys. The compartment was full of people she didn't particularly know, none of which were in the stories that her sister or brother told her. Except one of the boys, the pale one with silvery blonde hair. She remembered her sister talking about him and remembered his name to be Draco Malfoy.

Resigning, Chaele slowly slid the door open. All talk ceased, and they all turned to look at her. Chaele became more self conscious of herself than normal, and shyly stepped into the compartment. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Mentally, she shook herself and built her courage up.

"Excuse me, I was wondering if that seat was taken…"

"Why yes, I believe it is." Pansy rudely answered, even though it completely obvious that it wasn't.

Recognizing the aqua eyes, Draco threw Pansy a glare. She withdrew. Draco turned to Chaele, "What's your name?"

"Chaele…Chaele Fortunata." Chaele answered timidly, but looked him straight in the eye.

Now he for sure knew who she was, or rather who she was related to. Sighing to himself, Draco said, "There's not one sitting here. Sit."

Pansy, as well as many of the others in the compartment, minus Blaise who was the other one beside the empty seat, looked as if they were going to protest, but stopped at Draco's icy stare.

Chaele, finding courage in his words, moved to sit next to him and Blaise. Draco turned to her again, "So, is your sister Ziba Fortunata?"

Chaele nodded, "Yes, she is. Have you heard of her?"

"She's a stinkin Gryffindor." Pansy spat, "Everyone's heard something about the stupid girl."

"How dare you insult my sister." Chaele said firmly, anger blazing in her words.

"Oh, a pipsqueak like you thinks you can challenge me?" Pansy asked, "Me? A Slytherin sixth year!?" Pansy stood, her behemoth like state evident.

Draco rolled his eyes.

"Hm…" Chaele said bluntly, shyness lost, "I think I just remember my sister telling me about you. Were you the "duck footed idiot" who kept "stepping on Draco's feet" during the Yule Ball in your fourth year? Or were you the idiot who said pixie dust can actually make you fly?"

Pansy's face nearly turned red at her words, anger bubbling forth. Chaele simply stared back, waiting for her to say something else. Instead, Pansy's wand whipped out, pointing it immediately at Chaele.

The compartment door suddenly whipped open and in stepped a thirteen year old girl. Her hair was dark black, extremely long, and tied in a fancy Chinese style. In her hair was a nice Chinese hair pin; it was a chopstick like stick placed inside her hair, with decorative hangings off the end depicting a silvery dragon and a white phoenix. Instead of the regular robes everyone wore, she wore an elegant Chinese pien-fu. It was black, the long billowing sleeves and sash a midnight blue. A white phoenix like bird extended over the beautiful clothing.

"That's quite enough." The girl said in a beautifully calm voice. The girl had been developing for quite sometime, even for a thirteen year old. Her skin was fair, smooth, and a tad bit pale, and she had a petite chest. Chaele's eyes widened.

"And who're you supposed to be?" Pansy scoffed at her.

"Your new teacher." Aletheia answered her deep, calm eyes landing on Pansy momentarily.

"Our new teacher!?" The students in the room sounded.

"A kid like you?" Draco jeered.

"Yes." Aletheia said. "Now, Chaele, come along then."

Chaele nodded and stood. She momentarily stopped and turned towards Draco and Blaise, "Thank you."

Chaele turned back to her sister and the two exited together, the compartment of people watching confusedly.

* * *

"That wasn't exactly the group of people I expected you to be sitting with today." Aletheia commented once they were in the hall. 

"I didn't expect you to be here either!" Chaele said. "Are you really coming to be a teacher?"

"Well, there's a post open, isn't there?"

Chaele nodded, "This is wonderful! Wait'll I tell Ziba and Varick!"

"A bit excited aren't you?" Aletheia raised an eyebrow at her ecstatic sister.

Chaele giggled, and Aletheia rolled her eyes.

* * *

"First years!" Hagrid shouted above their heads, "First years this way!!" 

"I've got to get going." Chaele turned to her sister as they departed the train.

"Go, then." Aletheia turned to her as well, "I'll see you during the Sorting Ceremony."

Chaele nodded before striding towards Hagrid with the other first years.

* * *

Aletheia disappeared into the crowds of people as well. As she weaved among the crowd, Regulus's voice floated back to her: 

"_Just have fun with it. No one's pressuring you. Just have fun, and come home."_

A smile spread across Aletheia's face. _"Yes Father."__

* * *

**To Be Continued...**_


	2. Stay Alone

Harry Potter

and

**_The_** **_Feathers of Freedom_**

Chapter Two

Stay Alone

* * *

Chaele's eyes were wide as she looked upon the castle, the lights shimmering inside, the moon shining ahead. And this was just from the outside, and across the lake. 

"It's beautiful." Chaele said.

"I know it is." A girl stated beside her. Chaele turned to her. The girl stood with another, a boy that looked extremely similar to the girl. Both looked like delicate flowers, but something in their confident amber eyes told you otherwise. The girl had a hand on her hip. Her hair would've been only as long as to her shoulder, but currently it was tied with a long white ribbon. The extra string hung loosely on either side of the ponytail. Her hair was a golden color, with strands of her hair shorter than the rest out of the tail. They seemed to sometimes fall in her eyes, but didn't seem to bother the girl; the color had been died a dark purple.

Her twin had the same color hair, but his was short and spiked upwards. A thick streak of hair running the middle of his hair was died dark purple as well.

"H-Hello." Chaele said shyly, barely able to tear her face away from the enchanting sight before her.

"Hey." The boy answered

"My name is Eurayle." The girl said, "My brother is Eleutherios. You can just call me Ray and him Rio though."

"Nice to meet you." Chaele said, "My name's Chaele."

"Alright, board onto the boats." Hagrid shouted to the first years, "Watch your step, mind you, don't want any of you falling into the lake now."

"Come on, we can get a boat together." Eurayle stated.

Chaele nodded. The three boarded the nearest boat and they magically began to move themselves across the dark glassy lake.

* * *

After their ride across the lake, Chaele and her friends, along with everyone else, followed Hagrid up stairs and into a huge marble stepped hallway, where a stern witch was waiting for them. 

"Here's the first years." Hagrid commented.

"Thank you, Hagrid." McGonagall stated. Hagrid swiftly left into two huge doors, where the new students saw the huge Great Hall.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. I am Professor McGonagall."

* * *

"Ziba!" Ginny called to her as she and the rest of their group sat down. 

Ziba smiled to them and waved at her younger brother, Varick, before joining them. Fourteen year old Varick walked across from them and joined those at the Ravenclaw table. He sat down next to an extremely beautiful girl. Her hair was dark brown, almost black, and her eyes were an intriguingly dark green. She turned to Varick and the two began to chat.

Ziba sat next to Ginny and Harry, Hermione across from her with Ron to her side. Neville sat with them as well.

The doors suddenly opened, and the first years followed McGonagall to the front of the Great Hall, stopping in front of all of them.

Ziba gasped, "Guys, its Chaele!"

"Look!" Hermione whispered to her friends as Eurayle and Eleutherios walked by.

"At what?" Harry whispered back.

"The Nights kids." Hermione indicated the twins.

"What about them?" Ginny asked.

"Their family is extraordinary." Ron said, "They're magic is said to be one of the most powerful in the Wizarding World!"

"Their parents were spies during the Dark Ages." Hermione commented.

"I hear Hogwarts has been waiting for their arrival here for a long time." Neville said.

"We will now begin the sorting ceremony." McGonagall placed a stool in front of them and the Sorting Hat.

McGonagall called to many of them. They were sorted.

"Fortunata, Chaele!" McGonagall shouted.

Shyly, Chaele walked out of the crowd and towards the stool. She picked up the Sorting Hat and sat down, placing it on her head.

* * *

_Hm…Interesting. Most students come into this room with a preference for one house, or expecting a house. But I can't seem to find yours. Do you not have a preference?_

"_No, not really. I think all four of the houses are wonderful. I just think I'm lucky to be able to get into Hogwarts. If I were to go to any house, I'd be happy."_

_Really…Hm…

* * *

_

"Better be Hufflepuff!!!!" The Sorting Hat shouted. 

Chaele smiled and stood from the stool as the Hufflepuff table screamed their excitement.

"Your sister got sorted into Hufflepuff?" Ron said. "I mean come on!"

Ginny leaned down and kicked her brother. "Ow!" Ginny smiled sweetly.

More names were called.

"Cedron, Lynx!"

The girl named Lynx stepped out of the crowd, arms crossed. Her hair was midnight blue, her eyes a lighter midnight blue. Her hair was lower than her shoulder, but not much. It was tied into two pigtails at the back of her head, and yet the style didn't make her look like a child. Instead she looked older than eleven.

Lynx sat down and placed the hat upon her head. A moment later, it shouted, "Gryffindor!"

Harry, as well as the others at the Gryffindor table, shouted their happiness. Lynx casually walked over to the table and sat down next to Hermione.

"Congratulations on making Gryffindor." Hermione told her. The others nodded.

"Thanks." The girls said emotionlessly.

Of course more names were called. By now, everyone was squirming in their seats. They were all eager to see the two Nights twins be sorted. Everyone was wishing they'd be sorted into their house. Finally, the moment arrived.

* * *

"Nights, Eleutherios!" McGonagall shouted, smiling to the two remaining children standing. 

Eleutherios took his seat. Many moments passed by until the Hat shouted its answer, "Ravenclaw!!"

The entire Ravenclaw table erupted into cheers, deafening the entire room. Eleutherios stood and placed the hat down before walking over to the Ravenclaw table. Varick motioned for the young Nights child to sit with him and his friend.

"Nights, Eurayle!"

Eurayle, a hand on her hip, confidently strode up to the Sorting Hat, and placed it on her head. Like her brother, many moments, if not longer, passed. And still the Hat pondered. The entire hall held its breathe, each house almost ready to shout their recognition. And finally the Hat announced its answer.

"This young Nights shall be in!…Slytherin!"

* * *

The Slytherin table let out a relieved breathe, took in a deep breathe, and screamed out loud, deafening the entire room, some jumping up and down, other ecstatically shouting. 

The rest of the entire room just simply gasped loudly. The final Nights child hadn't been sorted into Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, or even Hufflepuff, but she had been sorted into Slytherin.

"She's a Slytherin!?" Hermione questioned loudly. A second later, she gasped and ducked, hoping no one heard her rude comment.

Eurayle didn't seem to be effected by this at all. Instead, she was smirking and walked over to the Slytherin table, sitting down next to Draco, who had vacated the seat just moments ago.

For a long time, the Slytherins cheered. They cheered and cheered, until they were all hoarse and could no longer cheer. They sat down, settling themselves, marveling at the fact that they got a Nights child in their table.

Afterwards, everyone was too shocked to speak, a pause of silence falling over the Great Hall.

"Well, um," McGonagall almost said awkwardly, "Now that the Sorting Ceremony has been completed, let us continue on then. Professor Dumbledore, if you will."

"Thank you Professor McGonagall!" Dumbledore stated, "Tonight has been a particularly interesting night! Alas, we do have a new teacher. And, mind you, this is no joke, so please, be kind and courteous, as this is also her first time here at Hogwarts. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Aletheia Fortunata!"

Aletheia stood and smiled that serene smile of hers at the students, who simply stared in shock at the thirteen year old professor. Even her siblings Varick and Ziba didn't know what to say, who had been so engulfed with the Sorting Ceremony that they hadn't noticed her.

The only one clapping was Chaele, who wasn't at all shocked seeing as she already knew. A moment later, the other teachers joined, as did the other students.

"Thank you, thank you," Dumbledore said, calming them. "Now that all of that is over, let us feast!" With a wave of his hand, and food appeared on their plates.

* * *

"Can you believe that Eurayle Nights got sorted into Slytherin!?" Hermione commented to her Gryffindor friends as they walked towards their dorm room. 

"I know, of all the houses, that one!" Ron said, "I swear, that Hat must be getting too old! What kind of choice is that!?"

"I really don't see why all of you are freaking out." Ziba said, "It's not that bad."

"Not that bad!" Ron said incredulously, "What do you mean "Not that bad"!? This is definitely bad! She's a child of a magic powerhouse family, and now she's in Slytherin! No telling what kind of evil thing they'll turn her into!"

"Hey!" Ziba turned sharply, stopping the entire group. "No one ever said that being evil is an asset that gets you into Slytherin. And for your information, it's not! I don't know why all of you stereotype them into that."

"We do because it's true." Harry said.

"Have you ever stopped and think that maybe they turn out that way _because_ everyone stereotypes them?" Ziba questioned. Everyone stared blankly at her, speechless. "Didn't think so. For god's sake, even the teachers stereotype them! If they can't make us stop believing, then what choice do they have?"

Ziba turned around and strode away from them, furious.

After a moment, Ron said, "Honestly, that girl needs to understand concepts better."

* * *

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ziba walked towards the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom with some other sixth year Gryffindors, including Verity Royals, a girl Ziba introduced to them. Verity had long wavy light brown hair and pretty silvery eyes. 

They walked into the classroom and were shocked to find that Draco and some of the other sixth year Slytherins were here as well.

"What are you doing here!?" Harry asked defensively.

"I could ask you the same thing, Potter." Draco retorted.

"If you must know," Aletheia commented, wearing her usual Chinese hairpin, walked down the spiraling marble staircases leading from her study room down to the classroom. Instead of the pien-fu she wore the other day, Aletheia now wore a dark, gold like yellow qipao with a black and gold dragon upon it. "It's something that I've requested."

"That our classes pair up!?" Draco questioned.

Now standing in front of her desk, Aletheia said, "You will now be receiving double Defense Against the Dark Arts. That's one reason for the pairs. With everything that's been going on lately, you'll need it. On Mondays, Slytherin will be paired with Gryffindor, as Ravenclaw will be paired with Hufflepuff. Tuesdays, Slytherin will be paired with Ravenclaw, Gryffindor with Hufflepuff. Wednesdays, Slytherin with Hufflepuff, Gryffindor with Ravenclaw. On Thursdays and Fridays all four classes will be put together for twice the now normal double. But you're in luck, the two double sessions are divided into morning and afternoon, and on both days we will be outside and on school grounds. Any questions?"

By now everyone had arrived.

"Just one." Ron said.

"Yes, Mr. Weasley?"

"Why do we have to pair up with the other Houses? I mean, why can't we just have our normal split schedules?"

"That's just it, Class," Aletheia addressed all of them. "This entire school is split. Yes, I agree, the four Houses was a great idea, and still is, but they don't seem to be looking at the big picture. By separating you into four different Houses, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Slytherin, and Ravenclaw, they have also divided the entire student body into fours."

The students stared blankly at her.

Aletheia sighed, "To put it simply, you, as the students, are not together. By not being together, you are unprepared for Voldemort." Almost all the students gasped at her frontness with his name. "We need to stick together to be able to defeat him. If we are not together, then we are unprepared. If we are unprepared, then of course we'll lose. That is why I am pushing all seven year levels to be placed into such a class schedule. You need to be prepared for what is to come. The entire world doesn't want you to see the truth, because they believe you are still children. That may be, but you still need to be prepared. That is my job here at Hogwarts. I want to unite you as students and banish the divide between all students. Now, take your seats, and yes you may choose where you sit."

The students scrambled about, placing their piles of heavy books down on the tables, and quickly sat.

Harry sat with Ron and Neville, while Hermione sat with Ziba and Verity.

"Now, to begin," Aletheia said, "How many of you can say Voldemort's name without cringing?" Only Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, though a bit shyly, and surprisingly Verity's hands shot up. "Mm hm. And this is another problem. How can you ever hope to defeat someone if you cannot even say his name? You mustn't let your fear of Voldemort rule you, or you will never claim victory. I know, it must be hard for you to say it. He is a most frightening person. I wish I could say that I could relate to your fears of him, but sadly I cannot. That would be lying. To tell you the truth, I've never been afraid of Voldemort. That is one thing we shall be practicing, how to say Voldemort's name. No, it won't be the only thing, but it will be one thing.

"Now then, let us move on. We'll discuss this a bit later. Open your textbooks to page…"

* * *

"This is a strange assignment to have us on." Ron commented, "Speaking Voldemort's name? Is that it?" 

"For us it may be easy, but for the others it's not." Hermione answered him. "But she's right. Too many of us let the fear of his name alone rule our decisions. We've got to get over it."

"I still can't believe it." Ziba shook her head, "She didn't even tell me."

"Tell you what?" Verity asked.

"That she was going to be a teacher here. It's just…I didn't expect it and…I'm unprepared for this. After all this time…"

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"Let's just say it's been a long time since I've seen Aletheia." Ziba said.

"So?" Ron stated, "You should be happy for her. She's like thirteen or something. She's supposed to be in her third year, and here she is a teacher. It's magnificent, excellent. It's…Unbelievable."

"Thank you, Ron." Hermione said sarcastically, "Not helping right now."

"Sorry."

"Look, Ziba," Hermione said, "Maybe you should just, you know, talk to her. I'm sure she missed you a lot."

Ziba nodded, "I suppose so…"

* * *

"Varick!" Chaele ran across the hall to her brother. 

"Hey, Chaele." Varick answered good naturedly

"Let's go have lunch." Chaele stated.

"Sure." Varick answered.

"Aren't you going to introduce me?" The girl from yesterday, the one that had sat with Varick, said.

"Oh, hey." Varick smiled. "Chaele, this is Adira Cane. Adira, this is my younger sister, Chaele."

"It's nice to meet you, Chaele." Adira smiled at her, and Chaele smiled back.

"Let's go find Aletheia and ask her to eat with us too." Chaele suggested.

"I don't know, Chaele. She's a teacher; she's probably busy." Varick said.

"Even teachers have to eat some time." Chaele retorted.

Varick smirked, "That's my smart little Chaele. Fine, then, let's go find Aletheia."

They swiftly walked towards Aletheia's classroom, conversing amongst each other. Upon reaching the classroom, they found that it was empty. Not one person was inside, not even a ghost.

"Where is she?" Chaele questioned. The checked her study room upstairs. No one was inside there either. "Where could she have gone?"

"It's alright, Chaele." Varick said, "She's probably busy doing teacher things. Come on, let's have lunch."

Chaele sighed, "Alright…I suppose. Maybe tomorrow?"

"Yeah, tomorrow." Adira answered.

* * *

Aletheia wasn't in her classroom. No, she wasn't in the teacher's lounge, or the Great Hall. She wasn't out on the school grounds. She wasn't doing "teacher things". No, she wasn't even eating lunch, and she certainly wasn't enjoying herself. 

She was on the roof of Hogwarts, alone, standing on one of the stone barracks. She was watching the students down below, either eating lunch together, or playing around together. She watched them laugh together, talk together, have fun together. She watched them be together, well, together.

"How I wish…" Aletheia said sadly, but shook her head swiftly, "No, I can't. I mustn't. It's too dangerous." Aletheia smirked sadly, scoffed forlornly, "After all, I am an **_abomination_**. No, I can't stay near them. I'd hurt them. In class is long enough. Yes, that's right, it's long enough. So what if I'm alone. I'm protecting them. This way they'll be safe. I've got to stay alone. Yeah…Stay alone…"

* * *

**_To Be Continued...

* * *

_**End Note: I would like to thank _katerpillar_ and _AlLhAiLtHeSoCkMuNcHeRs_ for reviewing my story! 


	3. Noticed

Harry Potter 

and

_**The Feathers of Freedom**_

Chapter Three

Noticed

* * *

_Inside a huge, circular room, walked a woman, clad in a black robe, hood up. Her skin was pale, her hair black. Because of the black hood, it was impossible to tell where her hair really started and where it ended. Her eyes were shifted between grey and green. _

_The room was darkened, only lit by candles on tables and the candles on the large chandelier hanging off the roof, that stretched upwards in to blackness. At the center of the room was a large, spiraling metal staircase. At regular intervals, an old metal walkway would stretch from the staircase and to a glass door, where you could go outside and look out a balcony. The only problem with this was that the platform walkways didn't have bars to hold onto. Other than the woman, there seemed to be no one else here._

_The woman began her ascent up the spiral staircase with feet that seemed to barely ghost over the metal material. Her skin glowed; she seemed to be some sort of celestial being._

_The woman's eyes momentarily glazed over with a silvery white mist, which disappeared a moment later. The beautifully elegant woman then said in a quiet, yet carrying voice: _

"_He'll be there with her today_

"_It'll be the foxes' turns to come help and play_

"_She has begun to teach_

"_But it is their hearts she is really trying to reach_

"_He'll see her misery_

"_The Dragon will wish for her to be free…"_

* * *

It was Thursday morning, and all four classes of the sixth years had crammed into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. The classroom's inside had been magically expanded, and double the normal chairs and desks had been brought in. Also, the board had been moved from the length side, in front of the class, but to the width end, so everyone could see. Also, the desks had been turned to face that side as well. 

"Good morning, class." Aletheia stood calmly in front of the class. She was dressed in a dark blue quipao with apple blossom flowers on tree branches extending over the silk cloth. "As you know, today will be when we go outside onto the school grounds."

There was a rattling of books and the scraping of chairs as the students prepared to go outside.

"But," Aletheia stopped them, "First, we need to know a few things, and I have a few grounds rules I need to set as well."

"So why didn't you do that over the week!?" Draco questioned, "Instead of having us try and shout You-Know-Who's name at each others and mirrors enchanted to have a black cloaked figure inside!?"

"Because, Mr. Malfoy, I have split the five days you go to school into sections. The first is working on your skills inside, the other outside. Yes, we are still inside, but what I am going to go over and teach with you next strictly has to do with what we are doing outside. In fact, you don't even know what we're doing outside.

"Now, take out quills and parchment. You'll be needing to take notes. And no, you may not use self writing quills. This has to be handwritten."

Another ruffle of sounds as the class gathered what was needed, and then Aletheia began again.

"I know for a fact, that all these years you have been studying about things that harm you. That's great, but what if you come across something or someone who looks like an enemy, but isn't? There are many things magical out there. They can either be good or bad, and this has to do with Magical Creatures as well. And that is the unit that we will be studying for the next couple weeks."

Aletheia turned to the board and picked up a long piece of chalk. She then began to write in her elegant cursive writing: Guardian Creatures.

"Guardian Creatures don't necessarily have to be guarding something of value to you. The title is, simply, just so that it is a bit easier in class, then having to write a long heading on your paper. To continue, guardian creatures are animals like dragons, unicorns, etc, etc, etc. However, they can also be animals that you don't even realize are, well, magical. Tell me, how many of you have seen a wolf before? A dog, a cat, a jackal, coyotes, foxes?"

The entire class had their hands raised.

"These are also magical creatures, only the ones that both the Wizarding and Muggle Worlds can see. You see, just as we have charms and spells to cloak ourselves, so do they. Some even have spells and charms that we cannot see through as well.

"But there are animals, such as dogs and cats, that choose to live in plain sight; who choose to live as "normal" pets. In reality, they have magic.

"Today, the animal we shall be discussing are Foxes. Now, foxes are a widely known magical creature, and in many different cultures as well. Foxes have been known as messengers, for long life, disaster, good luck, and even sometimes bad luck. The truth is, no one really knows what they do, but we do know that they are magical.

"Yes, that is what we are doing today. I've asked some of my friends to come help out. My friends? They are the foxes."

* * *

"Her friends are the foxes!?" Ron whispered to Harry. "I think she's gone completely insane!"

Hermione, who had heard and was trying to take notes, kicked Ron, "Ssh!"

* * *

"They are cautious animals, and must be handled with care; when meeting them, you have to stay quiet. You are going to try to befriend your own fox, and at the same time record information about them. Personality, their name if they give it to you, what you think magical about your fox: anything, and everything. I want you to get to know your fox as if they were a person you were trying to befriend.

"Foxes are noble creatures, and will not tolerate rudeness. They must be treated with the utmost care. And, mind you, you do not get to choose your fox. The fox will choose you. Now, we will walk outside and onto the grounds where a perimeter for our activity has been set up. We cannot have it all, because Professor Hagrid and his class will be out there as well.

"Ground Rules: You may not stray from our perimeter, be kind and courteous to your fellow classmates and of course the foxes. If a fox does not want to be your partner, don't try to force him or her. Oh, and one more thing, if your partner is not particularly interested or doesn't be friends with you immediately, it's alright. You don't have to do this on your first try, and I frankly don't expect you to either."

Aletheia walked to the door, "Follow me."

The students stood and scrambled to follow after Aletheia. They walked across the vast grounds, stopping somewhere near the lake, but not too close. They were in a nice, grassy area, but the grass wasn't too bad. The area was fenced off with a white painted fence. Just a few meters away, Hagrid and his first year Gryffindor class were also outside, doing an activity with unicorns.

* * *

Aletheia opened the gate to the pen, and the students all filed into the huge area. "Please take a seat on the grass."

The students sat, and looked around for these so called foxes.

"Where are these foxes?" Questioned Dean.

"Ssh." Aletheia hushed the boy, "Be silent and still, and wait."

* * *

It seemed like hours to the students until anything really happened. But it wasn't hours, in fact it was just a little over five minutes. The grass didn't even seem to stir, but all of a sudden foxes, hundreds, seemed to emerge from the grass. There were black ones, white ones, red ones, silver ones, golden ones, pretty much every color a fox could be was expressed on over ten different foxes.

"Hello friends." Aletheia said quietly, as to not scare them.

In unison, the foxes nodded their acknowledgement.

"These are the students. Go now, find a partner you find suitable."

The foxes began to spread out, sniffing people here and there. Sometimes staying, and sometimes moving on.

* * *

Harry waited, but felt an impatient stir every time a fox passed by. Some would sniff, but then move on, making him feel left out when he saw that others were getting partners. Ron, on the other hand, resolved to simply lying in the grass and sleeping. Hermione, however, was the most impatient. She was bored, and moved her folded legs in impatient anticipation.

* * *

Blaise sat next to a small patch of flowers, near where Draco was. A pretty little grey fox, the only grey fox he'd seen so far, with clear beautiful eyes, stopped by to sniff the flowers.

"Do you like flowers?" Blaise whispered to fox.

The fox turned slowly and cautiously towards Blaise. Seeing no danger, the fox nodded slightly. He or she began to walk towards Blaise, eventually beginning to sniff around Blaise. Blaise was able to determine her to be a she when she jumped into his lap. After sitting a bit, the vixen began to quietly climb his shoulder, where she stuck her nose through his hair, still exploring. Her whiskers tickled, and Blaise tried not to laugh too loudly or shake too violently.

After her inspection, the vixen leaped back into Blaise's lap. Smiling at her, Blaise asked barely above a whisper, "Does this mean we're partners?"

"I believe it does." The fox replied in an elegant voice.

Blaise's eyes widened, "You can talk?"

"Why yes, we can." The fox stated.

* * *

A little ways away, Draco was also having success. A black fox had suddenly trotted up to him, who had the deepest green eyes. The fox was a dog, meaning he was a male fox. The fox kept circling round and round Draco, but after a long while it was evident that the fox had chosen Draco. The only problem was, he wouldn't go any closer to Draco. It wasn't because of Draco, but the fox. The dog was trying to find something, searching, looking, for something.

* * *

"How is everything?" The blood red vixen spoke formally and quietly to Aletheia.

"Fine. The students seem to be responding well to the activity."

"And your Father? How is he doing?"

"He's great, Spinel."

"That's good." Spinel replied.

"How's Obsidian?"

"He's doing well with the program. I see he's chosen a certain silver haired boy."

Aletheia looked, "That is Draco Malfoy."

"Well, Obsidian sure does like him."

"Wouldn't you rather participate too?" Aletheia inquired.

"Not really."

"Thank you for helping out with my classes. I hope you don't mind me telling them that we're friends. I know we're close, but we're acquaintances…Right?"

"It's fine, and yes. But perhaps, only for now."

* * *

"So what's your name?" Blaise inquired to his friend.

"My name is Fluorspar." She answered, "And you are?"

"Blaise. It's nice to meet you, Fluorspar." Blaise said.

"I assure you, the pleasure's all mine."

"Hey, who's that with my friend Draco?" Blaise beckoned towards them. Fluorspar turned in their direction, "That's Obsidian, my brother. He's the leader of the clan. And that's his mate, Spinel." Fluorspar turned again. Blaise followed her gaze upwards, towards Spinel and Aletheia.

"She's beautiful." Blaise said, looking at Spinel.

* * *

Obsidian looked upwards at his mate. Aletheia and Spinel had now moved up a small hill within the area to watch all the other students. Draco too turned in that direction. His eyes widened in mild surprise at her sad face.

* * *

Harry and Ron had also turned to her, both recognizing her sadness. The only question was, what was causing it?

* * *

_**To Be Continued…**_


	4. Unexpected Saviour

Harry Potter

and the

_**Feathers of Freedom**_

Chapter Four

Unexpected Saviour

* * *

"Alright, pair up with your foxes!" Aletheia motioned to them with her hands. On cue, the students settled into the field and silently waited for their partners. Today was Friday afternoon, and the last class of the day. They were all tired and were glad to have the weekend arrive.

* * *

Draco sat and immediately Obsidian jumped into his arms. Draco smiled slightly, actually happy to see his small friend, "Hello." 

"Young Master Draco, how are you feeling today?" Obsidian questioned.

"I'm fine." Draco answered, "And you?"

"Just great."

"Your lovely wife?"

"Spinel is fine, thought I must remember to tell her you asked about her."

"Whatever for?"

"You're a most polite young man. A fine scholar indeed." Draco scoffed disbelievingly. Obsidian turned his head to the side in confusion, "Why do you mock yourself?"

Draco looked sad for a moment before an expressionless look masked him, "I'm no great scholar. All the teachers here at this school hate me, except maybe Professor Snape, and I definitely know most of the students either want to kill me or worship me. I'd like neither, thank you. I'm not a good student. The teachers are always sending me to detention, and sometimes it's not even my fault."

"Aletheia has not sent you to detention now have she?" Obsidian questioned.

"Now but she will. For the same reason everyone else does: I'm a Slytherin, and the other student doesn't have to get into trouble because it's obviously the Slytherin's fault. It's always our fault."

"Draco!" A small voice called to him.

Draco stood and turned, Obsidian on his shoulder. He faced Chaele, who was inside the pen with Hagrid, the other first year Hufflepuffs, and the Unicorns.

"Hey!" Chaele waved friendlily at him.

"Hello, Chaele." Draco said in a questioning voice.

"Miss Fortunata, come back to class!" Hagrid's voice boomed.

"Oh, coming!" Chaele shouted back. "I've gotta go, Draco, but it was nice seeing you again. Cute fox!" In the next moment Chaele was gone.

"Sweet girl." Obsidian said.

"Yeah." Draco stated.

"Remember, students," Aletheia brought Draco back to reality, "You must be gathering information on your fox, any information really, but mostly on the magical properties of your fox. You may continue."

* * *

"Faelan!" A boy dressed in silver and green reprimanded his friend. The boy was thirteen, had short black hair and amber brown eyes. He was clearly a Slytherin.

"What, Cereus?" Faelan asked. Faelan was a brown haired thirteen year old, it long and tied back into a ponytail. His eyes were brown as well, but extremely light brown. His hair was a natural grey, dappled with whites and browns like an owl.

"It's bad enough that you succeeded in convincing me to skip class with you, but do you have to use that owl!?"

Both Faelan and Cereus were in the Owlery. Faelan was tying a letter, a rather long and thick one at that, to an old barn owls leg. The barn owl was old and looked in need of retirement.

"What's wrong with this owl?"

"That one flies too low. It droops. He could crash into something. Can't you pick another one?"

"All the other ones are out."

"Or they don't like students who skip class." Verity, Ziba's sixth year Gryffindor friend, stood in the owlery doorway.

"Verity!" Faelan gulped.

"Who's she?" Cereus questioned, peering at her questioningly.

Faelan rolled his eyes, "An annoying lady who won't stop annoying me."

"Yes, that may be so, but at least I don't skip class."

"And exactly what're you doing now, hm?"

"I've got to send a letter for my teacher." Verity answered.

Verity lightly clicked three times and a silvery owl came to her. She expertly tied the note on her leg and let her fly out the window.

"You need to get back to class." Verity said, "The both of you."

"Yeah but…" Faelan looked forlorn.

Verity raised an eyebrow to him, "What's up, Faelan?"

"This is a letter to my Mom and Dad!" Faelan said "They're fighting on the forefronts against the Dark Side! Nobody knows it, but it's getting really dangerous out there. I wanted to see if they were alright."

Verity sighed, "Okay. Send your letter."

"Thanks." Faelan and Cereus went to the window and looked at the grounds below. They saw so many people, and the beautiful graceful glow of the Unicorns. "Please don't fall." With that, Faelan let the owl fly.

The owl flew, but it began to drop. It fell right into the Unicorn pens, flying low to the ground, scaring them half to death. They began to stampede!

* * *

The students inside the Unicorn pen screamed, running about. "Alright, students!" Hagrid shouted, "Over to that side of the pen while I round them up!"

Unicorns ran around the pen in a stampede, looking for a way to escape the "monstrous" owl that was "attacking" them. Hagrid chased after them, but they were so quick that he lagged behind the Unicorns. There was only one student left on the field. She was Chaele, chasing after the old owl. Everyone had forgotten about him, and he was going to be trampled if Chaele didn't shoo him forwards. But the Unicorns were behind her!

* * *

"What on Earth?" Aletheia, from her observing hill, peered at the chaotic pen. Bewildered, Aletheia watched an owl flap its wings tiredly, with a girl chasing after it that looked exactly like Chaele, followed by a herd of Unicorns, followed by a lumbering black bush that looked a lot like Hagrid. "Sister!?"

"Is this some strange human sport I should know about?" Spinel questioned, cocking her head to the side.

* * *

A little ways away, the other students had begun to take notice as well. Among them, Ziba stood up from her red fox. Her eyes were wide, shouting, "Chaele!"

* * *

Harry, Ron, and Hermione, too, had noticed. "What's going on?" Hermione said.

"The Unicorns are stampeding!" Ron exclaimed.

"Chaele'll be trampled!" Harry shouted.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione stood at attention, leaping forwards towards the gates.

* * *

"Look!" Blaise exclaimed.

Fluorspar turned to attention. Her eyes widened.

* * *

"Chaele…" Draco dropped Obsidian and moved to action.

* * *

"Next time fly higher!" Chaele waved goodbye to the old owl, forgetting about the Unicorns behind her.

"Chaele!" Ziba screamed, "Behind you!!"

Chaele, confused, turned. The Unicorns bore right down on her. Her eyes widened, her mouth open in shock, and she froze in fear.

* * *

"Chaele!!" Six different people screamed, trying to get her to move.

* * *

The next moment, Chaele felt herself flying to the side, with an impact a lot softer than that of a Unicorn's hooves. Chaele never hit the ground, but instead had landed on something soft. The Unicorns' ran past her.  
Chaele pulled back to find that Draco had saved her.

* * *

"Chaele!" Ziba, Harry, Hermione, and Ron were about to jump over the fence when Aletheia stopped them.

"All students report to the far side of the pen, away from the Care of Magical Creatures' pen!" Aletheia shouted. When the four ignored her, Aletheia added, "All of you, including you four. No exceptions."

Aletheia crossed over the gates and walked to the Care of Magical Creatures class. The Unicorns were still running, but they'd calmed a bit and were inclined to stay away from the class.

"What happened!?" Aletheia demanded from Hagrid.

"Well…I…Uh…"

"You know what, never mind." Aletheia turned from Hagrid and walked over to where Draco was helping Chaele up. "Are you alright, Miss Fortunata?"

Chaele looked surprised at the formality but recovered quickly, "I'm alright…Professor. Um, Mister Malfoy was able to save me."

"Good. Please return to your class."

"Yes." Chaele turned to Draco and said, "Thank you." Chaele then left to join her fellow Hufflepuffs.

"Are you hurt?" Aletheia inquired at Draco.

Draco looked at her and answered, "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

Draco nodded.

"Okay, then get back to the class. Further addressing of the class will be taken in a short while. Please tell your classmates that as well."

Draco raised a questioning brow and then turned to go back to the Sixth Year pen.

Aletheia breathed in deeply and turned back to Hagrid, "Professor Hagrid, I would like to talk to you a moment."

"Um, sure." Hagrid trundled over.

"Okay," Aletheia spoke in a low tone so that no one else could hear them, "I don't even want to know what happened. Please, just don't let it happen again. If you're going to have a class with large animals, please limit the amount of animals you use. It's endangering of students."

Aletheia turned around, walking back to the class.

* * *

"Varick," A girl, a fourteen year old Ravenclaw, waved a hand in front of the boy.

Varick shook his head, "Wha –? Huh?"

Caelum Stars looked concerned at her friend. Caelum had dark black hair and amber eyes. "What's gotten into you lately? It's not what they said…Is it?"

Varick blinked at her and said, "No, not really. I'm used to it."

"Then what is?" Caelum questioned.

"Hey, you two!" Adira ran up to them. "Ready to go get dinner?"

"Yeah," Varick said, relieved to drop the previous subject, "Let's go find my little sister."

A group of laughing Gryffindors walked by. It was a mixture of two fifth years and two fourth years, two classmates of Varick, Adira, and Caelum's. Ginny was amongst them.

One of the fourth years glanced over at Adira and Varick. A grin played on her face and she leaned over to whisper something to Ginny.

"Lisa!" Ginny said accusingly, but laughed hysterically along with the rest of the group.

Varick turned away from the group. He motioned to leave when Adira stopped him.

"Don't let them get you down."

"I'm not."

"Varick…"

"I'm sick of the rumors, Adira. I've already told you and Caelum why…"

"Just ignore them." Adira continued firmly.

Another loud laugh came from the group, and they began to sing, "Adira and Varick sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes love, then comes marriage –!"

Caelum, easily the more hot and furious one of the group, turned on them, "Will shut up!? Gods, all of you are at least fourteen and fifteen and you act like you're five years old!"

"Look Ginny," Lisa said, "Maybe Caelum likes Varick too." The group began to laugh and proceeded to chant again, only replacing "Adira and Varick" with "Adira, Varick, and Caelum" this time.

"Is there a problem here?" A handsome boy asked them, seeming to come out of nowhere. His hair was dark black, his eyes a mysterious dark blue black. His skin was a tad pale, and he was tall, intelligent, and had a small air of arrogance.

The Gryffindor girls looked at him, blushing and giggling. Even though he was a fifth year Slytherin, the teenaged girls couldn't help like the stoic and mysterious boy.

The girls crowded on around him, and from over their heads, the boy winked at Varick, Adira, and Caelum. Sighing, they took their cues. Adira and Caelum, like every other girl, rushed over to him, chattering on and on about something.

"Now, now ladies," The boy said, "I feel the need to pick just two of you to sit with today." The boy looked to Adira and Caelum, "How about you two?"

"Oh, no, they can't." Lisa objected.

"Yeah, they're dating Varick Fortunata." Ginny agreed.

"All the same, I like a challenge." The boy looped each arm around one of the two's shoulder and walked away with them. At the loss of the boy, the girls' hearts "broke" and they began to "cry". In the midst of the situation, Varick slipped away to join his friends.

* * *

Aecio Cane had long since dropped his arms from the two girls. He smiled as Varick approached them. He looked sheepish and said with a modest blush on his cheeks, "Thanks, Aecio."

"No problem, Varick." Aecio clapped him on the shoulder. "Shall we go have dinner?"

"Uh, let me get Chaele first." Varick said, "You three go on ahead."

"Okay, Varick. Suit yourself. Come on you two."

"Honestly, by now you'd think those idiots back there would've realized that you and Adira can't start going out." Caelum said logically, "You two are siblings, after all."

* * *

Aletheia, once again, was on top of the school roof. The stars shined high above, twinkling their merriment down at Aletheia, taunting her, never sharing their merriment with her. Aletheia smiled her forlorn smile as usual. So many looked up at these skies and found hope in them, looked up at the moon and felt a sense of wonder. What she found wasn't hope, but was reminded of the millions she could hurt if she didn't stay in control. The moon didn't fill her with a sense of wonder, but a sense of desperation. Away, on the moon, if she were somehow able to reach it, no one would be around to hurt.

She needed someone or something to give her hope, but there was no one. She needed to stop feeling this way, but there was no one.

She needed a guardian, a Saviour.

* * *

**_To Be Continued..._**


End file.
